an annual increase of 33 per cent, reaching 1.73 million this year. Considering these figures, the Sydney-based fund management company expects the booming market to add another 275,000 consumers next year, crossing the 2 million market by the end of 2022. This growth estimated for the next year will translate into an expansion of sector-wide funds under management by a whopping $50 billion, bringing the total value of funds under management to a record $180 billion.
“Over the course of 2021, the industry broke numerous records as more investors turned to ETFs to help achieve their financial goals and build their personal wealth,” Alex Vynokur, the managing director at BetaShares, told The Australian Financial Review. “Looking ahead to 2022, we believe the industry is on track for another strong year.”
Financial expert and ETF market analyst Chris Brycki, who is also the founder of online investment adviser Stockspot, noted that this projected growth suggests that an increasing number of investors were realising the benefits of passively managed low-cost funds which mimic the performance of the market instead of trying to beat it. “We have under-estimated the growth,” he said, adding that his company projected the market to surpass $100 billion in funds under management much more slowly than it has.
Recent reports show that the cost-effective, convenient and transparent nature of ETFs attracted a significant number of individuals belonging to the Millennial and Generation Z age brackets, since these investment products allow consumers to access a basket of stocks in a managed fund structure and listed on a mainstream securities exchange. Over the past year, 55 per cent of investors between the ages of 18 and 34 invested in ETFs, compared to just 30 per cent of investors over 55 years.
